?Chapter 453:


    We attacked again, but it was clear we were outmatched. The lion’s strength was overwhelming, forcing us back again and again. Blood soaked the ground beneath me, and Evie was covered in wounds too, but neither of us was willing to back down.


    The fight grew more desperate. Enraged, the lion’s fury escted. It bared its fangs, intent on tearing us apart. In a wild surge, it lunged toward me with a speed I couldn’t anticipate. Before I could react, Evie pounced on it, sinking her teeth deep into its neck. The lion thrashed violently, but after a brutal struggle, it finally copsed, its life extinguished by ourbined efforts.


    Panting heavily, I reverted to my human form and copsed beside the fallen beast, every muscle in my body trembling from exhaustion. Evie staggered over, her voice rough with pain. “Makenna, are you okay?”


    I nodded weakly, my throat dry, my words barely audible. “I’ll live… but Alice…”


    Dragging myself up, I stumbled toward Alice, dread tightening around my heart like a vice. Fate seemed cruel. Alicey on the ground, her breathing perilously shallow.


    “Alice! Alice!” I cried, my voice breaking as I knelt beside her. “Stay with me, Alice! I’ll get you help, I swear!”


    Evie knelt beside me, urgency sharp in her voice. “We need to get her to a hospital, now!”


    But Alice’s trembling hand reached up, stopping us.


    “It’s toote…” Her voice was so faint, like a fragile leaf caught in the wind, barely holding on to thest moments of autumn.


    She shook her head weakly, her dull eyes clouding as she spoke.


    “Makenna… I feel… like I’m slipping away…”


    Makenna’s POV:


    Check new chapters at


    “No! You can’t leave me! You have to fight, Alice! I’ll get you to a doctor!” Tears streamed down my cheeks as I clutched Alice’s hand, my heart racing with determination.


    But Alice, using what little strength remained, tightened her grip. “Makenna… I don’t think I have much time left. The bite on my neck… it’s bad. I can feel myst hour slipping away…”


    It was only then that I noticed the horrific wound on her neck—a gaping bite from which blood flowed like a river. Despair clouded my mind, leaving me adrift in a sea of anguish and pain.


    “Alice! No, please!” I screamed, my voice cracking with heartache as tears blurred my vision, making it difficult to see her face slowly fading of life.


    I frantically wiped my tears away, crying out in despair, “It’s all my fault! If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t be in this mess!”


    “It’s not your fault…” Alice’s voice, though weak, still carried a soothing warmth as she clung to my hand, trying tofort me even as she teetered on the edge. “Makenna… please don’t me yourself.”


    I shook my head vehemently, my heart heavy with sorrow, unable to utter anything else. At that moment, I longed for nothing more than to join Alice in her eternal slumber.


    A fragile smile flitted across Alice’s lips, as delicate as a wilting flower. “I’m lucky to have a friend like you…”


    “Me too, Alice… me too…” I nodded desperately, my throat tight with emotion, my words barely escaping as I fought to keep myposure.


    “Makenna… promise me you’ll take care of yourself. I may not be by your side anymore, but you have to find your happiness…”


    As she spoke, Alice’s voice faded. Slowly, her eyes fluttered closed, and her grip on my hand loosened.


    .


    .


    .